This invention relates to a large-bracted dogwood cultivar, which is one of those developed in an extensive program or interspecific hybridization, in an effort to produce characteristics which I believe are desirable in dogwood trees and the results have justified my efforts I believe.
The particular cultivar hereof, as one of a series of dogwood trees resulting from an extensive period of development, embodies my ideas of desirability and other characteristics which make the same commercially attractive and thereby having substantial potential for commercial distribution.
Some of the characteristics which I have provided as a result of my program, and which this particular cultivar exhibits, include an upright habit and a much larger tree than certain low spreading plants of which a companion plant Cornus X `Rutfan` (unpatented) is exemplary. Other plants developed generally during the same period of time are somewhat similar in upright habit but differ in possessing floral bracts of different size, shape, texture and/or color.
This particular cultivar as before suggested, is one of a group which will be referred to in general and in some instances specifically, by comparison for identification and other purposes.
Since the instant cultivar which I have chosen to designate for commercial identification as `Rutban`, is one of a number of dogwood cultivars which I have developed, it will be compared in many instances herein with certain of the others which are also designated by their commercial names though none is as yet patented.
It will be understood that the parental species C. florida and C. kousa have been used as a basis for the cultivars referred to and thus many of the characteristics will be found as common, yet each in turn is distinctive in its own way.
I note that plants of this species combination have not been reported previously, to my knowledge.
Field plantings of the instant cultivar `Rutban` in the vicinity of New Brunswick, N.J., do not reveal infestation by the dogwood borer nor have they exhibited "dogwood decline".
I am thus of the opinion that the plant `Rutban`, hereof may be grown wherever plants of the parental species C. florida and/or C. kousa are able to be grown and will exhibit the desirable characteristics and distinctions set forth herein.
Plants of my new cultivar `Aurora` are upright in habit and much larger than the low spreading plants of another of my so far unpatented cultivar developments, Cornus.times.`Rutfan`, are similar to plants I have developed, Cornus.times.`Rutcan` in upright habit but differing in possessing large, rounded, overlapping floral bracts rather than narrow floral bracts. They are also similar to another of my plants Cornus.times.`Rutdan` in upright habit, time of flowering, and shape of the floral bracts, but exhibit more vigor and produce larger and more heavily textured floral bracts. My new cultivar is similar in habit to yet another of my developments, Cornus.times.`Rutgan` in plant habit but produces larger, rounded, heavily textured, white floral bracts as opposed to the smaller, pink floral bracts of `Stellar Pink`.
My new hybrid is highly sterile.
In order to summarize the various characteristics which are notable in my new cultivar, I have broken down the aspects of the same regarding tree shape, flower buds, bracts and other characteristics which will be set forth hereinafter in the specific succinct summaries noted below.
I have caused the cultivar of my new dogwood tree to be reproduced asexually by grafting, budding or rooting of stem cuttings and found that it retains its distinguishing characteristics from generation to generation.